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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27029815">Wounded</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/emilysmortimer/pseuds/emilysmortimer'>emilysmortimer</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Newsroom (US TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 04:35:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,810</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27029815</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/emilysmortimer/pseuds/emilysmortimer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Mackenzie is taken into hospital after being attacked by a mugger. Will doesn’t handle it too well</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Will McAvoy/MacKenzie McHale</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>20</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Wounded</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“William McAvoy?”</span>
</p>
<p><span>The smile falls from his face and is instead replaced with a confused frown upon hearing the unfamiliar voice. </span>
</p>
<p><span>He’d been expecting Mackenzie. </span>
</p>
<p><span>It was nearing 2am, and while he was grateful she was clearly enjoying a rare evening out with Sloan, he was certain she’d regret staying out this late come morning. Particularly if she’d fallen victim to Sloan’s constant insistence of </span>
  <em>
    <span>shots, shots, shots. </span>
  </em>
  <span>(How that woman had such a high alcohol tolerance, he’ll never know, but on more than one occasion he’s watched members of their team try and fail to outdrink her).</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It’s been a strange evening on his part. Will can’t remember the last time he was alone in their apartment of a night. And while </span>
  <em>
    <span>obviously</span>
  </em>
  <span> he would never deny Mackenzie the chance to spend time with her friends without him tagging along, he does miss her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Which is ridiculous, of course - he spent </span>
  <em>
    <span>years</span>
  </em>
  <span> without her, fell asleep night after night without her by his side. But now he has her back, he struggles to be without her. He’s never been the kind of man that couldn’t even make it through a single evening without his partner… but that’s just the effect she has on him. He’s so completely, irrevocably in love with her, that it feels as if a piece of him is missing when she’s not around.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>How </span>
  <em>
    <span>pathetic.
  </span></em></p>
<p>
  <span>And so while he’d never admit as much, Will has spent the majority of the night waiting for a call from his fiancee to let him know she’s safely tucked into a cab and on her way home to him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But, instead of the soft (and slightly slurred) lilt of Mackenzie’s voice he’d expected, it’s a slightly gruffer one on the other end of the phone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?” Will responds in kind.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And he hears it’s a nurse calling from the local hospital, hears them confirm that Will is noted down as the emergency contact for one </span>
  <em>
    <span>Mackenzie Mchale</span>
  </em>
  <span>, hears that she was brought in a short while ago due to an accident… </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hears </span>
  <em>
    <span>attacked.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hears </span>
  <em>
    <span>blood.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hears </span>
  <em>
    <span>stable. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hears… not much else if he’s entirely honest, because he’s too busy attempting to single-handedly drag on a pair of pants, and the way he trips and falls to the floor would be funny were the situation not so dire. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Will confirms that he’s on his way before hanging up (or at least he thinks he does - his head’s a mess and so he’s not actually sure whether he said it out loud, but now isn’t the time to feel guilty over potentially being rude to a nurse. Mackenzie is in trouble, and he needs to be with her).</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He could call Lonny, would feel better having someone familiar accompanying him to the hospital, but time is of the essence. So, instead, after grabbing a few necessities, Will races from his apartment, down to the lobby and out onto the street, and hails a cab. </span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The hospital is a God damn </span>
  <em>
    <span>maze</span>
  </em>
  <span> of corridors, and he swears he’s been down this specific one at least three times. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>People rush by, staff and patients alike, the former too busy to stop and help and the latter proving clueless. It’s taking forever for him to find the ward Mackenzie is on, and the longer it takes, the more he begins to worry because what if she thinks he’s not coming? Unlikely, but still, he dreads the thought of her being injured and in pain and alone and with no idea when or </span>
  <em>
    <span>if </span>
  </em>
  <span>he’ll show up to take her home.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It feels like hours before he stumbles upon a familiar figure huddled up in what looks to be the most uncomfortable chair he’s ever seen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sloan?” he calls out, albeit gently (they are in a hospital, after all), and his voice sounds foreign even to his own ears. It’s hoarse, and has a slight wobble to it, one born out of fear. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The woman’s head snaps up, and the way she nears flies out of her seat and into his arms breaks his heart. He holds her to him tightly, feeling her resolve break quickly as she trembles against him and she sobs into the crumpled material of his t-shirt (and if he looks somewhat unkempt, he can’t find the energy to care - an un-ironed t-shirt is hardly a top priority right now).</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Will lets Sloan cry and cling to him, doesn’t rush her despite his urgency to see Mackenzie. Although unscathed, it was likely Sloan was still shaken from the… whatever it was that had occurred (he really needed to start asking questions soon), so he did his best to hold his tongue, and hold her, and let her take a moment to come undone.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Soon her sobs subside, and Will hears her mutter an apology as she pulls away from him. He quickly shakes his head, uttering something along the lines of “don’t apologise” as she steps back and wipes at her eyes with her hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened?” he asks, because he </span>
  <em>
    <span>needs</span>
  </em>
  <span> to know.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sloan hesitates for a moment (Will notices she’s unable to look at him) before sighing and shaking her own head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We left the bar a little while after it closed.. I think we were actually the last ones there. Kenzie was trying to hail a cab when this guy ran up to her and grabbed her.” Sloan inhaled a shuddering breath before she continued (though, honestly, Will’s not entirely sure he wants her to). </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He had a knife. Held it to her neck and threatened to stab her with it if she didn’t give him her purse. She said no. She actually had the balls to say no, even though he literally had a knife pressed against her throat.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Despite himself, Will breathes out a laugh at that; it’s so like her to be ballsy in that sort of situation. But then he thinks of Islamabad and how potentially being stabbed loses all of its threat when it’s happened before, and he feels himself go cold.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And then there were sirens,” Sloan continues. “And that must have scared him because he just pushed her away and ran, and she fell and I suppose she hit her head pretty hard on the way down. The EMT’s said she’s suffering from a concussion, and the blood loss was just… they’re surprised she was still awake when they got there because of how much blood she lost.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Will can’t hear anymore. It’s too much.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is she?” he asks gruffly, and the moment Sloan points him in the right direction, Will is moving.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In hindsight, he supposes he probably should’ve knocked. But, instead, he barrels into Mackenzie’s room, coming up short when he sees her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She’s sat atop the bed sheets, gaze fixated on the window, her head bandaged (the white dotted with specks of red that make Will’s stomach clench). But the thing that frightens him most is how </span>
  <em>
    <span>small</span>
  </em>
  <span> she looks. How vulnerable. His Mackenzie, who isn’t afraid of anything (bar jellyfish), who’s willingly taken herself off to war zones, who refuses to hand her possessions over to muggers with weapons. It makes his heart ache.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her head turns, and her gaze settles on him. Her eyes are bleary. But the smile she gives him as she notices him is enough to rid him of all his worries. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Billy,” she breathes out, and he crosses the room to her bed and folds her up in his arms.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Billy?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Though it comes out in a near whisper, her voice is startling in contrast to the otherwise silent room. He’d not realised he’d stopped in his endeavour to clean the wound on her forehead until she murmured his name. Nor had he realised his hands were shaking until she chose to comment on them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And he’s not sure why, but the light-heartedness of her tone as she teases him about said shaking hands (along with the aching of his chest, and the ever present knowledge that this entire situation could’ve been a </span>
  <em>
    <span>lot worse</span>
  </em>
  <span>) is what sends him over the edge. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The bottle of saline solution Will had been using to clean Mackenzie’s wounds near clatters to the floor from the sheer speed with which he stands from his chair. He turns his back to her. He can’t let her see the tears that pool in his eyes, or the way his cheeks flush out of anger. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jesus fucking Christ, Mackenize, this isn’t funny!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He doesn’t mean to lose his temper with her (there’s only one person to blame, after all), but he’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>seething</span>
  </em>
  <span> with rage and feels ready to explode, and she’s the only person around to take his anger out on. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I almost lost you to a fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>warzone</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and now this. A guy holds a knife to your throat and threatens to kill you unless you hand over your purse? You give him your fucking purse, Mackenzie.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>If she didn’t know any better, Mac would think - from his tone, and his words, and his body language - that Will was blaming her for what had happened. But she </span>
  <em>
    <span>does</span>
  </em>
  <span> know better. She knows it’s misplaced anger, that there’s no one else around to direct his rage at, so he’s chosen the easiest target.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So, rather than rise to the bait and grow angry in return, Mackenzie tries to control her own temper. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She stands from her own seat and steps forward, timid, cautious, mindful that, much like a bomb, he could explode at any moment. Her fingers graze against his; it’s barely a breath of skin against skin, but Mackenzie still feels Will tense for a brief moment before he relaxes again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Billy,” she mutters once more, grasping his fingers between her own. She feels stupid as tears begin to cloud her vision. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At the time, she’d felt no fear (as Will so kindly reminded her, she’s been to a warzone for crying out loud, a kid with a knife was nothing). But looking back, Mackenzie realises how </span>
  <em>
    <span>stupid </span>
  </em>
  <span>she had been. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her attacker was clearly nervous himself, evident in his shaking hands and the slight wobble in his voice as he demanded her purse. One wrong move and he could have killed her, whether he’d intended to or not.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She was a Goddamn idiot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” she breathes out. There’s a slight quiver in her breathing that has Will turning abruptly and pulling her into his arms, crushing her against his chest as she dissolves into heart-wrenching sobs, finally allowing the enormity of the situation to wash over her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Mac’s fingers grasp deftly at the back of his shirt as she allows him to hold her, her legs near giving out to the point where Will is mostly holding her up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He buries his nose into her hair and whispers sweet nothings to her as she cries, tells her she has nothing to apologise for, that he too was sorry, promises her he’ll never let anything like this happen to her again (and sure, it’s an empty promise, one they both know is impossible for him to keep, but he hopes it provides Mackenzie with some comfort, no matter how brief or fleeting). </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Will holds her until her sobs subside and her fingers loosen the deathly grip they have on him. Even then, he doesn’t quite let her go. Instead, he holds her at arm's length and cups her cheek with one hand, using the pad of his thumb to wipe away the remnants of tears on her face. Her skin is flush with colour from the exertion of crying, but the dark circles beneath her eyes are still evident, and he finds himself worrying (not for the first time, and on top of everything else) over the distinct lack of sleep Mackenzie gets. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come with me,” he prompts, taking her hand in his own again (and has she always been this dainty? this vulnerable and breakable?) and leading her up the stairs.</span>
</p>
<p> </p><hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They end up undressing and climbing into the shower together and, for once, Will doesn’t complain about the way Mackenzie instantly turns up the temperature to the point that he’s certain the water is scalding him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She leans into him once again, and he holds her as the water cascades over them. They’re silent, and the moment feels serene, a whisper of tranquility in the whirlwind of their lives. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With languid and careful motions, Will begins to massage some shampoo into Mackenzie’s hair, and her eyes fall closed as she gets lost in the sensation. He’s careful not to agitate her wound (the mere sight of it is enough to send him into a panic once again, but he does his best to control his emotions and instead focus on making Mackenzie feel relaxed). </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She lets out a soft sigh as he rinses the shampoo from her hair, a sound he almost misses because of the running water. But he hears it all the same, and it makes his heart clench, and dear </span>
  <em>
    <span>God</span>
  </em>
  <span>, how did he get so lucky to find this woman that loves him so greatly and without reservation?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’s gentle as he goes through the motions of showering, first aiding Mackenzie, and then washing himself down, not missing the way her eyes train on his hands and watch his every move. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She sidles up against the shower wall as he washes himself, and she honestly looks tinier than he’s ever seen her. Her personality and the way she carries herself often makes Will forget how vulnerable she can often be, and, when he sees that side of her, he aches to hold her and protect her from anything that could cause her harm. She’d fight him, of course, tell him he was being an idiot and that she can protect herself, but he considers it all the same. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eventually, she begins to shiver (which he doesn’t understand considering the scorching temperature of the water), and so Will is quick to rinse himself off. He shuts the water and climbs out, grabbing a thick towel that he bundles Mackenzie in, his heart fluttering at the sight of the grateful smile she offers him. It’s been years, but he still finds himself shocked by how beautiful she is from time to time. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He grabs his own towel, wraps himself up in it, and collects a smaller one to dry her hair with before the two of them make their way into the bedroom. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She makes to take the towel from him but he shakes his head, instead guiding her to sit down at the dresser, where she offers him a confused look through the mirror. He simply smiles in return, utters a quiet “let me” before beginning to dry her hair with the towel.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Will watches through the mirror as Mackenzie’s eyes drift close, notices the way her shoulders relax as the tension leaves her body. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’s happy to do this for her - it’s not often she gets a chance to take the weight off, her mind constantly on work, even when she’s not there. She gets so little sleep that he wonders how she functions properly. And on their rare days off, she so seldom allows herself a chance to </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually</span>
  </em>
  <span> relax, no matter how much coaxing he does. So he’s grateful for moments like this, where it’s just the two of them, and they can forget about everything for a while.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once he’s satisfied with how dry her hair is, Will reaches round Mackenzie to pick up her brush, stooping over to kiss the crown of her head as he does. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’s gentle as he brushes her hair, starting at the bottom and working his way up. She makes a soft noise of appraisal, melts under his touch and, honestly, she could stay caught up in this moment forever.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Will continues to brush her hair for a while, even when it’s free of knots, if for no other reason than the pleasure Mackenzie is getting from it. But, eventually, the moment comes to an end, and he places the brush back on the dresser once more. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two dry themselves off, and Will takes the towels back into the bathroom, hanging them up as Mackenzie settles herself beneath the sheets, not bothering to get dressed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He joins her moments later, cocooning himself within the sheets, Mackenzie’s body wrapping round him instantly as if of its own accord. He holds her once more, presses a loving kiss to her forehead as her eyes flutter close.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you,” Will tells her, and even after all this time, it still makes her melt when she hears those words from him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you, too,” she mumbles in return. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And, despite the day being a horrific one, Mackenzie falls asleep feeling content, and safe in the arms of the man she loves.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hi, thank you for reading!</p>
<p>This took me almost two months of writing and editing but I’ve finally finished it!</p>
<p>I hope you enjoyed it. Please leave kudos and comments (I read them all and am so grateful for them)</p>
<p>Also, thank you to Rachel for once again being my proofreader</p></blockquote></div></div>
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